Exploring the Dream Pattern among the Nightshift Workers

Exploring the Dream Pattern among the Nightshift Workers

Globalisation led to the increase in technology and development of multinational companies in the developing countries. This development has caused the increased need for working round the clock and the only option for such a need is different shifts in the companies. Nightshift workers are increasing day by day, but many times, people forget the health and sleep effects caused by the nightshift. One such impact is the altered circadian rhythm, which is very important for proper functioning of the body and a good sleep. Freud put forward that dreams occurring during sleep serve as the guardian of sleep. Dreams are the reflections of the waking life. This altered circadian rhythm can have an impact on waking and sleep life of the nightshift workers. This qualitative study is to find the dream pattern among the nightshift workers and to find the frequency in dreaming among this group. This study is conducted with nine nightshift and nine dayshift workers, dream journal was used to collect the dreams from the participants. Also, semistructured interview was done among the nightshift workers for in-depth understanding on their sleep habits and dream pattern. The dream patterns among both the groups are similar but there are dreams that make the nightshift group different from the dayshift. The frequency of dreaming is seen more among the nightshift workers. The study shows that sexual dreams are seen majorly among the nightshift group. This finding can be further used to conduct researches on the impact of nightshift on the sexual health and overall well being of nightshift workers and the reflection of the same in their dreams.

Nisha K. S.

Psychology